Hooray, it's THAT time of year (again)! And also, Boo...I/we are all another year older JUST LIKE THAT! (feels that way anyway). Rae & Susie (and ANYBODY else still out there checking in now and then) hope you make an appearance (or 20) this year...sadly the Asylum has turned into a Tour-Asylum the last few years...nothing but dust-balls and crickets (and maybe a few spiders and hairballs from Sophie and Abbey). I would have done some posts on the even-now-continuing Tour Divide race, but I think I'm the only one who cares about that...but I will toss out that the winner who just finished yesterday morning set a new FKT (Fastest Known time) beating the record by about 21 hours with a time of just over 13 days for the 2700 miles, 150,000' climbing and totally self-supported ride (running clock, sleeping, eating, fixing bike, all on the clock). Grizzly bears, snow, mud, wind, heat...it's all there on the Divide! The winner maintained an average of 205 miles a day (90% dirt roads, 6% singletrack, and 4% pavement). He was riding around 20 hours a day. Obviously NOT human! OK, back to le Tour.
So, I JUST finished watching the Teams presentation (on Peacock). This year I subscribed to Peacock for $19.95 for a YEAR! That seems like a good deal, and there is lots of other stuff to watch and stream, so I'll take it! The one thing I will miss is the 'no commercials'' monthly thing I had the last 2 years...boy that was nice! Watching any replay it just blipped and continued the race...but that was only available for replay, watching any of the stages live you had to deal w/ the commercials.
ANYWAY, WOW! I haven't had much time to peruse the teams, but scanning the team lists during the presentation, there should be some serious competition this year (I hope anyway). One thing I did notice that saddens me, NO SEPP KUSS! I have to research this, did he get hurt? I didn't think he was traded/moved teams...and why wouldn't they bring him if he's still w/ Visma?
Another WOW, Mark Cavendish is BACK! After being slighted last year, he will get the chance to notch one more win...I know he's a bit long in the tooth and all, but gosh I hope he gets one!
OK...now for some thoughts on the competition and everything else that comes to mind.
First off, they are starting in Italy (Florence), OK...cool and all. But they are finishing in Nice France! Say WHAT? No Champs? I guess the little sports thing happening soon after le Tour finishes is a problem...you know, THE OLYMPICS? (I'm sure Susie has been watching all the World Championships and now Qualifications that have seemingly been going on for quite some time now.
And to step away from cycling for just a brief moment (for a quick rant) as this just crossed my mind now that I have mentioned the Olympics, the Womens Basketball team DOESN'T HAVE Caitlin Clark on it? WTH??? She's only the single greatest thing to happen to Womens Basketball since, you know, it BEGAN! NCAA ALL TIME POINTS record, HELLO? And now in the pro's her Indiana Fever team is selling out every game! (Tho I think the ref's need some training, she's getting MUGGED and BEAT TO SHIT over and over again and the ref's just let it go...pretty blatant stuff too). Sure the Fever aren't anywhere near a top team (why they've had top draft pics for years now)...but hey, it's like when the LA Kings got Wayne Gretzky...it changed things forever for the better on that team!
OK, I'm back and feel better (had to get that out of my system). So just some basics from how I understand things...Vingo crashed pretty bad (a quote I found is "endured a horrific crash at the Tour of Basque Country in April. The Danish cyclist suffered a broken collarbone, several broken ribs, a
pulmonary contusion and a pneumothorax as a result of the crash, and
spent 12 days in the hospital"). So we aren't REALLY sure just how fit he is, likely not the same guy we've seen the last 2 years (but who knows, maybe he's fine?). Pogo just demolished the Giro, won like 6 stages, burned a ton of energy but he's young and I think can get away w/ that, we shall see. I watched the replays of a few stages, he looked pretty good. Oh, and he has a fantastic team this year...Adam Yates was on the podium last year, and now is Pogo's main man on the road (that's some serious firepower)!
Roglic is now on Bora, tho I honestly don't see him as a true contender for the podium, but hey, you never know...maybe he's seriously motivated with a new team and all. He held on to win the Dauphine this year, but the final day it was very close. I'd say Vingo and Pogo have a new problem to contend with this year: Remco on Team Quick Step...he's one of the top up and coming guys to watch (IMO). And this year Team Ineos looks to be VERY ready for battle, with Rodriguiez at the helm and Bernal as his main man...that combo could be quite dangerous. Ineos is not a team to sneeze at this year (G. Thomas is also riding, but WAY down in the team-presentaion standings...interesting, he was the 2nd guy from the bottom). Boy, there's no love for a past Tour winner at all there!
That's about all I can think of at the moment in the GC Battle Royal we are all hoping to see this year. Oh, I did just find that Sepp was left off the Tour Team for "medical reasons". DAMN!!! He is one of the real bright spots the last 2 years, I so love to watch him race! Without Kuss in the mountains, and with the great team UAE brought this year, AND the questionable fitness of Vingo, I'd say (at this moment knowing exactly zero for sure) that Pogo has a REALLY GREAT CHANCE at winning his 3rd Tour.
I also see Phil and Bobke will be the main guys, with reporters CVV and Steve Porino. Pre-race and Post-race will again be Paul Burmeister with Brent Bookwater, and adding TJ van Garderen as a rookie analysts (uhm, Jury is still out on how that will go. HOPEFULLY he's had some public speaking training, cuz when he was a rider, any time you'd put a mic in his face he "uhm'd about 15 times a minute along with other super distracting things...he is (was?) NOT a good spokesperson at all. Sad to see Chris Horner not there (again)...I always thought HE was a fantastic analyst!
So...we shall soon see! Tomorrow the GAME IS AFOOT! (I will be out on the bike EARLY to beat the heat and HOPE to get in a good 6 plus hour ride, so will watch the replay in the afternoon).
OK, that's all for the moment. Tour Time! I LOVE saying that! It's TOUR TIME! HOORAY!
Let the Games Begin! (er, wait, isn't that for the Olympics?)
Let the Carnage Begin! (hope not, but it seems inevitable).
OK, Stage 1 and done. Exciting finish, wasn't expecting that! Pretty tough day out there for the first stage, SEVEN rated climbs! Not giving anything away here other than to talk about TJ in the booth...I'm just not seeing it. He's not exactly Mr. Personality. Maybe he's a teensy bit better in the 'Uhm's and 'I mean's than when he was still racing, but not much. Brent Bookwater is really killing it tho, he's really stepping up his game. And Paul is Paul, excellent all the way. Maybe TJ will loosen up a bit as the race goes on. I can hope. Phil and Bobke, nuff said there. Same for CVV...all on their 'A' game.
ReplyDeleteNot a ton of time (it's past 9pm and I'm up around 4am)...for Stage 2, wow...Pogo back in yellow...what a surprise (NOT). The bit surprise for me was that Vingo looked good, stuck right on Pogo's wheel when he took off on the 2nd time up that climb at the end...did not expect that. And then another break succeeding, two in a row, wow! I'm actually still jazzed by the Stage 1 finish...the young'un in the break all day holds on, Bardet able to bridge across (no small feat there!) and then Frank absolutly demolishes himself pulling Bardet that last few K's, and the DO IT! His first TDF, and he takes 2nd on Stage 1, helping his team captain to his FIRST Yellow jersey of his career (and his last TDF)...that's stuff you just can't make up, loved it!
ReplyDeleteAnd then today, boy, this new generation, ooh, 2 hard days, we need to just cruise along for the first 5 hours...say WHAT? That was pretty bizzare. But then the ending, LOVE that Bimini was able to beat all the other sprinters! I was rooting for him last year too, and now he's done it! Only question: where was Cav? Didn't see him anywhere in the front 50 guys in the last 1k...sure his Stage 1 was very bad, but he's a sufferer extraordinaire, and he looked normal to me yesterday in Stage 2. I have to admit I had to FF thru most of the stage today (in order to get to bed at a reasonable time). Tomorrow I hope to see a bit more, it is a Mt stage, woo hoo! We get to see who comes out to play...interesting that Carapaz on EF pulled on Yellow today, that was also a surprise, very cool!!! JV must be very VERY pleased w/ that!
OK, gotta get some sleep...July is always hard, I need a rest day, think I'll just cruise along tomorrow and not really work hard until maybe hour 5...(GRIN!)
GAME ON!
Yeah! I’ve been trying to get back here to gab but the past few days have been more hectic than usual. I missed the last hour or so of Saturdays stage as I had to leave to get down to the Kennedy Center to see Funny Girl & I didn’t get home til after 7. Sunday is my heaviest home workout day (altogether, more than 7 hours) & yesterday I was pooped at night. Anyhoo, I’ll miss the ending of each weekdays’ stages as I go the gym 4 days a week in the am & on 2 days I go in the . I also workout everyday in my house : I’m the MOST FIT IVE EVER BEEN IN MY FREAKIN LIFE, which cracks me up but my health is my #1 priority.
ReplyDeleteSo, I’ve seen almost no cycling the past 10 months & don’t even know the current names of the teams. I did start checking cyclingnews the past week or so & that’s when I found out that Sep was taken off the Tour team as he hadn’t fully recovered from COVID. One of the few times I checked cyc. News a few months ago was when I saw what happened to Vingo & I ASSUMED he wouldn’t be at the TDF this year so boy was I shocked to see him! Hopefully, he can make it competitive with Babyface or else it looks like he’ll win by a freakin HOUR!
Right now I’m watching the replay of todays stage - I was thankfully able to FF thru the 1st couple hours I heard/ semi watched while I was doing my early am workout. I checked my phone after my yoga class(they were halfway up Galibier) & then again after I finished my weight training & treadmill & briefly was able to see what happened. I will not pay cy news paywall so can only see the LIVE report while it’s actually happening & then after that, only headlines. So, I’m interested in seeing how it transpired.
ReplyDeleteHoping Cav can last at least til the next mt stages start & he’s able to do the miraculous yet again. Another year older, man, I HOPE but am not betting on it. Has he won any races in the past 11 months? I have no idea but man, I’d LOVE to see him win a stage & set the new record.
I think there’s a ITT soon& then it looks like there will be a bunch of stages that are “normally” in the 1st week. Btw, the Tour doesn’t finish in Paris since the Paris Olympics start a mere 5 days later & the city will be PACKED with thousands of athletes/coaches/media & the accompanying craziness before/during an Olympics. Last time I saw a final day TT was when LeMond shocked the world& beat the French leader fignon. WHOO, TALK ABOUT CHAOS! I think that was 89, maybe? I was still so new to the Tour that I didn’t truly comprehend theMASSIVE SHOCK & achievement that was. Can’t stand the guy now but , damn, that was IMPRESSIVE.
Are you still working? Will you be retiring this year or have you rethought things? Still moving to Richmond? hope things are going great with you & your family (including the doggies). I LOVE not working! Other stuff has caused stress/chaos/problems ( my mother’s estate - really what is left of my dads) is SUPPOSEDLY FINALLY GOING TO BE DONE WITH PROBATE THIS MONTH! A MERE 15 months after my mom died.
ReplyDeleteWell, the fellas are on the Galibier & I want to watch.😁 will check in hopefully tomorrow.
Hey Susie, glad to hear from you (it's been 'a minute'). Glad to hear you are staying busy, that is key IMO.
ReplyDeleteI put off my retirement a year to put more $ into our kitty...Richmond is OUT, and Hawaii is back (also a big part of the reason I'm doing another year, Ohau is more $$ than Richmond). So the current plan is by the end of January. I've got LOTS of things to do, and even tho I like my job and the people I work with, I need time to do them, and working full time pushes the big things I want to do further into my future (bikepacking the Tour Divide/GDMBR, do a full cross-country road-tour, also the full west coast north to south road tour among others).
AND I need to do them before we move to Hawaii (Jeannie got a promotion so we are staying here until she retires, likely about 3 more years after I go, then it's Aloha for us)! The monsters (doggies Sophie and Abbey) are great, Sophie the Bulldog is almost 10 now, and Abbey the mini Bull Terrier just turned 7! Gosh how time flies!
OK, back to Stage 4 (they are on the Galibier for me now too!) Then bed cuz 4:10 am comes FAST. Thurs is the 4th so I have that off, and I'm taking Friday off cuz why not!
HE DID IT! HE DID IT! OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteI still can't believe it...I mean, I was hoping, but honestly it seemed pretty long odds against the best sprinters in the world. The last 5k the Astana train was all over the map, getting pushed around and broken up, re-formed, broken up, yet Cav sat very patiently pretty far back, watching and waiting, then in the final 1k it looked like he might be pinned against the right-side-barricades (again, brings back memories of the Sagan incident). But just at the right time a hole opened up in front of him and he was able to escape the barricade and had clear pavement ahead. He turned on his Manx Missile Motor (good to see the MMM again, it's been a while!) and accelerated away from the barricade and to the left of the road (getting him away from the guy in front of him) and then just motored away from the rest, and won with clear wheels! I'm still in disbelief, but oh-so-very-happy for him, and Astana...he was a big risk for them, to literally build the team around the oldest guy in the race, kudos to Astana and the director for taking that chance! I'm just giddy, what a day!
Oh, in all my excitement over Cav getting win #35 I forgot to mention the HAIR-RAISING descent of the Galibier done by Babyface...that was (in Bob Rolls words) SCINTILLATING! Looking at those turns, NO guardrails pretty much anywhere, coming into them at ludicrous speeds (over 55mph which is absolutely INSANE), I can't help but imagine the damage if you were to make one tiny misjudgment and overcook a turn...makes my skin crawl (I think the fastest I've ever been is a teensy bit over 40, and to me THAT feels like death about to happen if ANYTHING unexpected happens). Granted these guys are pro's with zillions of hours on the bike, but hey, they make mistakes too. That all said, at least the bikes are SO much better now than even 10 years ago...disc brakes are a gamechanger. They are all on carbon wheels which are TERRIBLE for rim-brakes (it's like dragging your foot to slow a skateboard), and when even the slightest moisture is present event that dismal performance is halved (my first nice road bike came w/ Zipp tubular wheels, and the carbon wheels have to have special brake pads so-as to NOT damage the rim, and I can say from experience they sucked in almost every way for a recreational rider. After my first flat on the road I actually invented swear words new to the human language getting the punctured tire off and the spare on...they are GLUED ONTO THE RIM with contact cement! I have huge respect to the team mechanics replacing those in numbers, it's SO HARD! Anyway, I put those wheels on ebay about the day after that flat. OK, on with todays race (oh, and Happy Independence Day!)
ReplyDeleteOK, 2 stages to comment on, 4th of July (Thursday), flat stage w/ bunch sprint. Cav and Astana were looking GREAT from about 10k to 1k, then it all went to hell and they were scattered, Cav got pushed further and further back (ended up 20th). That was sad, he was looking so good too. Anyway, Groenewegen takes the win over Phillipson (who was later relegated for improper lane deviation (blocked Wout van Aert into the barricades, sadly too as Wout was looking good to challenge for the win). They said Jasper was livid about losing and even more so about the relegation, however after watching the video, rightfully earned, he totally blocked Wout out of any chance. Quit your whining and hold your line you big baby! Any chance of the Green jersey likely just left the station, as he lost his 2nd place points and more.
ReplyDeleteAnd then Fridays ITT, WOW! REMCO! Holy catnip, that kid is smokin' fast on a TT bike! Cav was the first starter (ie: Lanterne Rouge at the moment), did a decent ride but is OBVIOUSLY saving his energy for Stage. Vismo has new TT helmets, Phil even called them "Spaceball helmets" (they look VERY similar to Rick Moranis's Lord Dark Helmets helmet, only not black). I was thinking exactly that when he said it, thought that was pretty funny! Anyway, the final 4 guys finished in the top 4 positions, only it was Remco KILLING it, with Pogo 12 seconds back, then Roglic (WOW) in 3rd at 34 seconds back, and Vingo 4th on the day at 37 seconds back. So Remco gets his FIRST TDF win (and now has wins in all the Grand Tours)! So it's obvious that Vingo isn't where he was the last 2 years fitness-wise (as he killed Pogo/Babyfact last year in the TT). But considering how badly he was hurt and how little he was able to prepare, IMO he's doing fantastic!
So now, the GC standings after the TT: Pogo still in Yellow by 33 seconds over Remco, 1:15 over Vingo (that's a LOT), and 1:36 over Roglic (expected).
And so, the first week is done and done, in the books and all that. Wow, only 14 stages left all of a sudden!
As for IF Cav can make win #36 in the next 2 days, yeah, not really seeing it...they are both 'hilly', so by comparing them to Stages 1 and 2 I'm just not seeing him being at the front at the end of the day. Maybe Wout can slip out and notch one (or both), he must be pretty frustrated after having Phillipson slam the door on any chance for the sprint yesterday, maybe he will use it and go out on the break? (tho likely not, I think he will be looking out for Vingo all day). OK, enough for now, off to bed. Good night!